


Persisting in the Pantheon

by bluebells



Category: Stargate (1994), Stargate - All Series
Genre: Community: 1sentencefic, M/M, Pre-film, canon character death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-13
Updated: 2013-09-13
Packaged: 2017-12-26 11:40:42
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,429
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/965517
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bluebells/pseuds/bluebells
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>As a villager he had been a hunter, as Anubis he was the First of Ra's court; the first to be called upon, the first to be reckoned with, the first and last who kneeled of free will in servitude.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Persisting in the Pantheon

**Author's Note:**

> Set before the film and following through to conclusion, sentences run much like a continuing story with one or two out of order. Let's play "spot the early season SG-1 references"!

**#1. Ring**  
It was a ring of carved stone that expelled a tunnel of water before settling into a rippling wall through which none but Ra had ever passed; he called it his 'Stargate'.

 **#2. Hero**  
As a villager he had been a hunter, as Anubis he was the First of Ra's court: the first to be called upon, the first to be reckoned with, the first and last who kneeled of free will in servitude.

 **#3. Memory**  
From the chamber wing, Anubis watches Ra converse with the strange, blond foreigner who has learned their tongue; his heart grows cold as Ra's face darkens in a snarl and he remembers when Ra was a young man, a friend who grinned foolishly - and somehow Anubis can't recall his own name.

 **#4. Box**  
The first time Ra presented the sarcophagus to Anubis, he explained, "It will restore you that you remain young," and laid Anubis down, hand lingering on his servant's brow, "and that you remain here… with me."

 **#5. Run**  
Anubis instructed the children that the Chosen never ran in pursuit of their prey - instead, they stalked and, if privileged, they may even fly; behind him, on the throne, Ra smiled.

 **#6. Hurricane**  
Their god had an awful temper, not roaring and thundering the halls like his pious First Guard (the only man permitted to even smirk in the presence of their Lord), but Ra would glare them down, eyes ablaze like the sun and they all prayed that he would not bear death in his palm another day.

 **#7. Wings**  
Ra's Guard bore destruction on the city of the slaves, soaring high on their polished wings of gold; death in Ra's court was always startling, raw and savage and after so many years he didn't understand why his stomach still turned to see Ra's cruel satisfaction.

 **#8. Cold**  
Gods were not affected by illness or the elements, but sometimes when all were asleep and the palace whispered with the night's chill, he would bring a cotton sheet to the foot of Ra's bed - which was often rejected and Anubis himself was drawn down to Ra's side.

 **#9. Red**  
Red is the sun that burns like a halo above Ra and the blood he draws from Anubis' back.

 **#10. Drink**  
Anubis often used his position as First Guard as an excuse to stay in Ra's bedchamber and drink in the sight of him making the pretence of sleeping.

 **#11. Midnight**  
Anubis remembers the night the great form of a sharp sun descended on the valley; the air that had been still suddenly electrified, the villagers ran while he searched, then watched in horror as his friend stumbled with plain, dumb curiosity into the light.

 **#12. Temptation**  
The inducement to touch was a treacherous whim: when Anubis' fingertips brushed that pale neck, the force of the repelling blast from Ra's palm threw him down so hard he woke the next day in the sarcophagus with Ra's gaze burning down on him and promising a second death; he later learned the rule was simply for Anubis not to touch _first_.

 **#13. View**  
Ra spends most of his time observing his subjects, or passing orders from his throne, and when he stands at his private balcony, Anubis retains a measured distance to share the view.

 **#14. Music**  
One day Ra learned the slaves were making song in his city and Anubis himself was sent in response to the outrage, but he never told Ra how he hung back in the shadows and listened to their music, to the way it lifted his heart, before giving the heavy order to strike.

 **#15. Silk**  
As Ra draws the silk blindfold over Anubis' eyes, the man imagines that mouth isn't curved in such an ugly quirk; he prays (to whom?) Ra's voice won't croon with a deep, inhuman bass and when he hears the light, almost forgotten chuckle, his heart skips a beat.

 **#16. Cover**  
Anubis believes his mercilessness is simply a cover he will preserve as long as he's required to serve, that no part of him enjoys sending the guards to throw down slaves that were his own people - he believes this until the tall, foreign commander draws a staff against Ra in the court and his fist flies of its own volition, free hand retrieving his staff, because no one - _no one_ \- draws arms against his friend.

 **#17. Promise**  
It was a promise they made before the light descended, to watch and safeguard each other, and Anubis is glad that even if his friend never grins like he used to, Anubis can still keep his end of the bargain.

 **#18. Dream**  
Ra sometimes speaks to Anubis while he sleeps, omitting the resonance from his voice to enjoy the sight of tension leaking from his guard's face just to watch it reform in a tight frown when he opens his eyes come morning.

 **#19. Candle**  
Ra was not accustomed to displaying his divine abilities (and usually quashed such requests with a predictably violent response), but he once humoured a child by taking a candle and lighting his own hand on fire - none were more horrified than Anubis and the child - of course, their God's hand was healed to gossamer-smooth perfection by morning and Ra laughed when his servants threw themselves at his feet.

 **#20. Talent**  
For some time Anubis believed he remained at Ra's side because he was actually favoured, until the day Ra stated he was only there because he had a talent for crushing skulls and firing with quick precision on moving targets; Anubis was most surprised at his own astonishment.

 **#21. Silence**  
The silence was peace and foreboding at the same time, he could pretend while it was quiet and dark, but each time Ra's mouth opened and that inhuman sound rumbled forth, the old life that held the word 'friend' slipped further away.

 **#22. Journey**  
The first time Ra took them among the stars, they struggled not to gape at the rain of light as they swam through the galaxy; Anubis was the only one that didn't even glance at the spectre.

 **#23. Fire**  
Ra's fingertips leave trails of cold, biting fire on his skin and Anubis is very, very careful not to make a sound when he feels the brush of warm lips on his, and it's too soft, but if he asks - worse, moves - for more he might wake up weeks later with a lingering concussion… if he's lucky.

 **#24. Strength**  
Strength wasn't throwing your competition bodily across a court room without a second thought, although Anubis liked to think so; he imagined strength was simpler, like breathing despite the invisible weight sinking in his chest at the sight of Ra's awful delight when he rose from a kill.

 **#25. Mask**  
Anubis is honoured the day he is given a unique armour mask bearing the jackal, the hunter and keeper of Ra's people; he prefers to keep the mask on, but realises when the helmet retracts and Ra sneers that they've removed nothing at all.

 **#26. Ice**  
When Ra first brought them to an ice planet ruled by a woman with copper tresses, a teasing smile and eyes that glowed like their Lord's, the court was more stupefied by the cold than her beauty and Anubis principally blames this for nearly losing Ra to a surprise attack in the middle of the night; the only enjoyable part of that journey was the thick cloak he wore in the retaliatory attack that sealed the feline indefinitely.

 **#27. Fall**  
Ra kneels in the shadow of his first guard on the dune, Anubis watches the sand sift from his long fingers, wondering what such a creature could be thinking coming out to this heat after years watching from his platform, but then the deity stands and proclaims this will be their new quarry; a small part of Anubis dares to cringe because this is so far from the village and he's seen no oasis for miles in any direction.

 **#28. Forgotten**  
Anubis stands woodenly among the sweeping dunes, struggling not to calculate how much he's forgotten to preserve the muddied memory of a friend-turned-tyrant and, for a moment, he struggles to place their village among the sands until he remembers that village planets past.

 **#29. Dance**  
The dance is always the same: Ra encourages a sort of belligerence only because he loves the weight of the killing gem in his hand and when Anubis treads territory that would surely see him crushed under a divine palm he drops to one knee, kisses the offered palm wordlessly and bites his tongue against the sound of a deep, rough chuckle splintering that perfect mouth.

 **#30. Body**  
Hurling the slave down before the throne, Anubis absently wondered how they overlooked him as a child, but beauty did not discharge his heresy and a single gesture from Ra bared the jackal's silver talons; Anubis did not miss the approving nod as he tore the young man's heart from his body and into the fire.

 **#31. Sacred**  
Gods held nothing sacred in any world, were subsequently feared and revered by their subjects and there was truly no other soul Anubis held more precious than the one reclining on the throne.

 **#32. Farewells**  
It wasn't easy to farewell a life that was full and glad, but Anubis drew that line in the sand to witness his _then_ and his _future_ ; he would never need to farewell the God who forbade Anubis to leave his side.

 **#33. World**  
His was a brave new world of gilded armour, golden spears and silk trains, but nowhere amongst all this splendour could he find a soul without fear, even in himself.

 **#34. Formal**  
In the company of guests formalities must be observed: during a council of Ra and his divine progeny, Anubis and the other first guards genially stalk each other in the waiting room.

 **#35. Fever**  
In the fever of battle, Anubis led Ra's warriors to victory by looking beyond the faces of the slaughtered, thinking only of the final head he had to retrieve and not the stench of sweat and blood caking his skin.

 **#36. Laugh**  
It was strange and silly how difficult it was for him to silence the children's meagre laughter in Ra's court.

 **#37. Lies**  
The staff thrums under his hand as he scours the last characters of language from the stone walls and listens to Ra pass down the law forbidding the act of scripture, punishable by expulsion from the prosperous rivers of afterlife.

 **#38. Forever**  
The small twist of the mouth is instinctive now and Anubis knows it's an ugly attempt at celebrating their conquest, the cheers of the men are drowned by the question thundering in his head: "How much longer do we persist this way?"

 **#39. Overwhelmed**  
Anubis can't recall the moment he finally understood the village, the glory and the desert peace were too distant and vague in their recollection to be authentic; they had to be whimsical notions born from a wish for kindness and a simpler reason for the raw despair clawing at his throat when Ra brushes his face.

 **#40. Whisper**  
For many months Anubis has been light of hand and they all know it, he's heard the whispers that he's finally slipping and he ignores it all until he notices Ra's piercing look of disappointment.

 **#41. Wait**  
He feels the hand pushing against his shoulder, the cold eye of metal in that palm, and ignores it all until Ra pulls out of their kiss with obvious strain - notices with detachment that the deity wrapped around him is shaking and short of breath - unsympathetic, he drags Ra down for a wet, open mouthed kiss, breathes in the answering moan as he jerks the man's hips onto his thighs and knows that he'll pay for this before the night is through.

 **#42. Talk**  
None of them were familiar with the term 'exile', but the creed brooked no room for inquiry when Ra threw the power staff at Anubis's feet and pointed to the active stargate; Anubis quietly bowed for what should have been the last time, before stepping through the rippling wall.

 **#43. Search**  
When they find him six worlds, eight months and two employers later, Anubis is still doing what he does best, guarding and gutting for the highest bidder as they bear an odd request from an old friend.

 **#44. Hope**  
His replacement didn't last a full turn of the seasons; revolt among Ra's subjects on a distant world claimed the second Anubis and Ra hopes that with his first guard beside him again, order will return to the realm.

 **#45. Eclipse**  
The knowledge that Anubis is once again at his back eclipses any doubt Ra harboured about acceding to his instincts on the subject of his return; this recall didn't have to be a defeat if Ra was the one who benefited in the end.

 **#46. Gravity**  
Anubis failed to grasp the gravity of the situation until the leader of the newcomers, with his strange, shorn head and hard gaze, had levelled Anubis' own staff weapon at the protective throng of children.

 **#47. Highway**  
When the Horus guards failed to apprehend the foreign heretic and his fellow outsiders after their escape, they shrank under the withering, blue gaze of the jackal with the knowledge that an even harsher judge awaited them in the throne room.

 **#48. Unknown**  
The young guard convulsed as Ra's power crackled over his brow and Anubis had seen this murder countless times before, but he never questioned 'til now why he allowed this creature to destroy his entire world; he asked himself why he stayed to watch it crumble around him and why Ra could still beseech anything of him, anything at all….

 **#49. Lock**  
He's cleaved down thousands with these talons and somehow this one man - an outsider - has thrown him on his back in the temple of his own realm, he can feel the blood beading his top lip as he snarls and the outsider slams his key gem against stone with resounding finality.

 **#50. Breathe**  
Ra's compiling a list of blame for this rebellion when the transporter hums to life, the rings retract and the air escapes him at the sight of the blood pooling beneath Anubis' disembodied head.

 

Postlude: Ok, so Hathor was never on an ice planet to my knowledge (I might have derived that from some legitimate source, but it was a long time ago), but let's pretend she was deposited with the Tau'ri afterwards.  



End file.
